The Big Lake Fake!
by Fegerrific
Summary: Mystery Incorporated is taking a break from monsters and going fishing! But, of course, a vicious Man-Fish shows up and wrecks havoc! Throw in a monster-hunting charlatan, a reckless teenager and an angry park ranger, and the gang is in for quite a fishy mystery!
1. The Haunted Halibut

Fred Jones speared a wiggling worm on his fishing hook before dropping it into the crystal waters of Halibut Lake. "After all the kooky mysteries we've been solving, is there anything more relaxing than a weekend on the lake?"

Daphne gave the wriggling cup of bait a withering look. "Measles shots?" she asked.

"Dental Surgery?" Velma replied, barely looking up from her Hummingway novel, _The Young Man and the Lake_.

"Like, a flea dip?" Shaggy quipped. Scooby yipped in agreement.

Fred glared at the gang. "Ha ha. Very funny." With a flourish, he cast his line into the water. "But you won't think it's so funny when I'm eating fresh fish and you're not." Almost instantly, Fred's line went taut, yanking him to the front of their fishing boat.

"Jinkies, looks like a big one!" Velma exclaimed.

"It's putting up a fight," Fred struggled. "But I'll get him!" With an almighty tug, Fred yanked his line back into the boat. Hanging from the hook was a pair of orange swim trunks! The gang roared with laughter while Fred blushed.

"Hey! Hey mister!" a sandy-haired teen called from the water. "Can you throw those back?" Blushing furiously, Fred passed the trunks down with a mumbled apology.

The teen thrashed the swim trunks on underwater before introducing himself. "I'm Charlie Windham," he said with a grin. "My folks come up here every year to fish and this year they dragged me along."

"Sorry about your trunks," Fred muttered, averting his eyes.

"Don't worry about it. With all the swimmers and boaters, it's too crowded here." Charlie answered with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Someone oughta get some of these wave-hogs away and let us swimmers have free reign. Hey, cool dog!" he exclaimed, noticing Scooby for the first time.

"You want to pet him?" Shaggy asked. "Scooby would love it. Come on up!"

Charlie clambered into the boat. "Hey, pup!" he exclaimed, rubbing Scooby's neck and muzzle vigorously.

"Rello!" Scooby sighed, giving the boy's hand a gentle lick. Charlie accepted one last doggy kiss before slipping back into the lake. "Thanks guys. We're here all week, so I'm sure I'll see you around!" With a splash, Charlie dove underwater.

"Nice kid," Fred said. He speared another worm on his hook and cast his fishing line again. Almost instantly, the line went taut and Fred nearly fell into the water.

"More swim trunks?" Velma asked.

"No," Fred grunted. "It's…"

A scaly gray head popped out of the water followed by a webbed hand holding Fred's fishing line. The creature's blank green eyes narrowed as it hissed at the gang.

"ZOINKS!" Shaggy shouted. "A haunted halibut!" Fred grabbed the oars and rowed as quickly as possible to the shore. As soon as the rest of the boaters and swimmers caught a glimpse of the scaly beast, Halibut Lake was quickly emptied. As quickly as it came, the beast sank out of sight.

"Jinkies! What was that?" Velma exclaimed.

A park ranger strode up to the gang. A pair of oversized sunglasses hid her eyes and her charcoal hair was pulled back into a ponytail. "You just met the Man-Fish of Halibut Lake," she replied. "It's a local legend around these parts. But in the past week, it's become a bit more than a legend." She extended he hand. "I'm Ranger Sarah Widmore. Wait, you kids look familiar. How do I know you?"

**(A/N: The gang met Ranger Widmore in **_**Snow Place to Run!**_**)**

Velma thought for a moment. "Ranger Widmore! You used to work up in Canada near Big Pine Lodge!"

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "You were the kids who helped capture the snow monster, weren't you? I was transferred down here to Halibut Lake about a month ago, about the same time as the Squalls sold their lodge to that skier. It's been a refreshing change from that icy wasteland. But now that this freaky monster's showing up, I almost miss the cold."

"Is there any way we could help, Ms. Widmore?" Fred asked. "You know we're pretty good at catching monsters."

"Well, if you ask me, that Man-Fish has the right idea," the ranger said. "Anything that gets those nasty, polluting tourists away from Halibut Lake is fine by me. And besides, we've already hired someone."

"Hired someone?" Daphne parroted. "Who?"

A giant of a man emerged from the nearby forest. Broad shoulders and a massive chest were squeezed into a tan safari outfit. A safari hat sat at a rakish angle on his head. "Hannibal Tribe, professional monster hunter!" he roared with a smile. A gold tooth glinted in the sunlight as he talked. "You've got a monster, I'll hunt it down!"

"Hannibal's agreed to help us with our Man-Fish," Ranger Widmore explained.

"For a price, of course," Hannibal said with a wink. Spotting Daphne, he leaned towards her chest with a sly smile. "And after I get the monster, how about you and I go on a little date, sugarplum?"

Gently, Daphne raised the hunter's chin so he was looking in her eyes. "Well, big boy," she said seductively. "How about…in your dreams!" She gave him a shove and stormed off with the rest of the gang close behind. "Neanderthal!"

Hannibal watched them go. "I like 'em feisty!" he called after the retreating gang.

After getting a safe distance away, Fred turned to the gang. "Well, it looks like we've got another mystery on our hands."

"Like, Hannibal's got a mystery on his hands," Shaggy corrected. "WE don't have to do anything."

Daphne snorted. "That hunter couldn't find his way out of a paper bag, much less capture a Man-Fish."

"I don't trust him one little bit," Velma agreed. "Let's go check him out."

"Good idea, Velma," Fred said. "Let's split up. The girls and I will go see what we can dig up about Hannibal. Shaggy, you and Scooby go talk to Ranger Widmore and see if you can find out more about this Man-Fish."


	2. Clue Collection

Fred and the girls strode along the shores of Halibut Lake, looking for any sign of Hannibal. "Hey, guys!" Daphne exclaimed, pointing to a half-hidden, dilapidated van emblazoned with "Hannibal Tribe: Monster Hunter." Fred and Velma pulled back some branches to reveal the whole scene.

"Ugh, what a slob," Velma said, distaste evident in her voice as her eyes lingered on the litter-strewn campsite. She picked around the still-smoldering campfire to a threadbare folding chair. Two pairs of sunglasses sat untouched on the arm. Picking them up, Velma slipped off her own spectacles and tried on each pair. "Jinkies! Now this is interesting. I can't see a thing with these sunglasses on." She tried on the second pair. "But with these I can see just fine."

"Two different prescriptions," Fred declared. "I wonder why…"

"I'm not sure…yet," Velma said. "But I'm sure I don't want Hannibal catching us going through his campsite."

While Fred, Velma and Daphne Shaggy and Scooby ambled through the forest surrounding Halibut Lake, searching for Ranger Widmore and a snack bar (not necessarily in that order). Striding through a sandy beach, they admired the sand sculptures built by child architects. "Hey, Scoob, come look at this," Shaggy called. "It looks like that freaky Man-Fish,"

Scooby padded his way to the sculpture, a life-sized recreation of the Man-Fish in sand. "Rill rary!" he shuddered.

"Still scary?" Shaggy translated. "Here, Scoob, watch this," He made several goofy faces at the sand sculpture. "See, it's just a fake."

Suddenly, the sculpture sprang to life, waves of sand cascading down its gray scaly body. "ZOINKS!" Shaggy screeched, racing away from the beast. "Like, this Man-Fish has got some serious sea legs!"

The pair raced through the forest in a blind panic with the Man-Fish snarling and hissing behind them. In their haste, Shaggy and Scooby ran headlong into Fred, Velma and Daphne.

"What's gotten into you two?" Fred asked, struggling to disentangle himself from the mess of arms and limbs.

"Like, the Man-Fish is right behind us!" Shaggy panted.

In answer, the bushes rustled as something approached. The gang froze in fear as footsteps came closer and closer. But instead of the scaly face of the Man-Fish, it was Ranger Widmore who pushed through the brush. The gang breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"What's going on here?" the ranger demanded, bending down to offer a helping hand. "I heard screaming."

"Sorry, Ranger," Fred replied after everyone got to their feet. "Shaggy and Scooby thought they saw the Man-Fish."

A look of concern flitted over the ranger's face. "Man-Fish? I never saw any Man-Fish. But if I do, I'll be sure to shake its webbed hand for scaring off all these wretched, nasty tourists." Angrily, Ranger Widmore stalked off.

"Jeepers, what a grouch," Daphne said.

"She certainly seems to want all the tourists gone," Velma said. "And have you noticed how she only shows up after the monster has disappeared?"

"And where's Hannibal?" Daphne asked. "For a monster hunter, he's not doing much monster-hunting. The creature has shown up twice, but I haven't seen Hannibal since this morning."

"Come on, gang," Fred declared. "Let's get back to the boat. We'll see if the Man-Fish will make another appearance at the lake."

The gang trekked through the forest back to the lake. "I see the Man-Fish has been out to lunch," Velma remarked, gesturing at the lake now filled with dozens of boats.

Charlie Windham, standing on the shore, folded his arms over his bare chest. "Yeah, I wish that Man-Fish would come and scare all those boaters away. I can't swim in that mess." He turned away from the lake and stormed off into the forest.

As if summoned by Charlie's wish, an ominous hissing sounded from underwater before the Man-Fish burst from the water with a tremendous splash. Boaters abandoned their fishing lines and steered their boats to shore. The Man-Fish roared and gave chase.

Fred grabbed an abandoned fishing net and coil of rope. "Quick, gang! After that fishy freak!"

Hannibal Tribe leaped from the bushes. "No need, kids! I'll save you!" He took a flying leap and tackled the Man-Fish to the ground. The creature gave a twitch before falling still. "Ha HA! Hannibal Tribe has slain the Man-Fish!"

Ranger Widmore emerged from the forest. "You got the Man-Fish?" she asked incredulously. "I guess that means you deserve this big check."

Daphne did a double take. "Wait, I thought Hannibal was the monster?" she asked, puzzled.

"And I was for sure it was Ranger Widmore," Fred mused.

Velma stepped forward. "That Man-Fish is a fake, Hannibal, and I can prove it!"


	3. The Fish is a Fake!

"What are you talking about?" Hannibal snapped. "That Man-Fish is as real and as deadly as they come!"

Scooby, meanwhile, sniffed the prone body on the Man-Fish, which started giggling. Scooby eased the mask off the culprit's head to reveal a young man with a crew cut.

"Great timing, Ed," Hannibal snarled.

"I'm sorry, Hannibal. It tickled!" Ed protested between guffaws.

Shaggy patted his buddy on the head. "Good going, Scoob! Why weren't you scared?"

"Racks! Rin rockets!" Scooby barked.

Snacks in his pockets?" Shaggy translated. "I should have known! And I, like, hope he shares!"

"But how did you know?" Ranger Widmore asked, fastening handcuffs on Ed and Hannibal.

"We found two sets of prescription sunglasses at Hannibal's campsite. I didn't understand what that meant until I saw Hannibal and the monster together. I realized that two people must have been involved."

"I get it! Ed would show up disguised as the monster, scare people, and then Hannibal would show up and charge to get rid of the monster," Fred finished.

"Yeah, we cooked up this scheme to get rich!" Hannibal spat. "And it would have worked if not for you meddling kids!"

"Well, looks like another mystery is all wrapped up!" Fred proclaimed as Ranger Widmore led the two crooks away. "Who's up for more fishing?"

The rest of Mystery Incorporated motioned refusal. "Like, the only way I want to see another fish is if it's swimming in butter sauce!" Shaggy groaned.

Scooby-Rooby-ROO!" Scooby barked in agreement as the gang laughed uproariously.


End file.
